7 must-go UNESCO World Heritage Sites in Southeast Asia

A UNESCO World Heritage Site status is some sort of a holy grail of travel destinations. Not only does it exalt locations of cultural, historical or aesthetic significance, it also serves as the list of must-go locations for travellers.

Of the 981 World Heritage Sites in the world, Southeast Asia boasts 33. Yeah, it’s not a big number, but it’s enough to keep you busy. Here are our top selections of World Heritage Sites you absolutely have to see.

Angkor Wat

Why go?

Built in the 12th century, this temple ruins is one of the most beautiful on Earth, and is mentioned in the same breath as other famous ruins from ancient civilisations such as the Mayans and Incas.

Pro tips

Get a local guide to bring you around. They’ve got guides trained in many languages – English, Mandarin, Japanese, French, Spanish, and many others – and they do so fluently.

The guides would usually bring you to Angkor Wat to watch the sunrise, and to another temple called Phnom Bakheng to catch the sunset. Do the tour the opposite way – sunrise at Bakheng and sunset at Angkor Wat – if you want to avoid the massive crowds. It really isn’t any less impressive.

George Town

Why go?

If ancient ruins and landscape isn’t your thing, then the unique architectural and cultural city of George Town, Penang may just be the right place for you.. Another large draw would be the undeniably delicious Penang street food.

Komodo National Park

Why go?

For the Komodo Dragons, if nothing else. These fascinating critters exist nowhere else in the world. It’s probably also the most “exotic” location listed here. And by exotic, it means “less frequently visited” among the other attractions here.

Pro tip

While it’s possible to visit the national park at any time of the year, April to December remains the best time due to the dry season and more comfortable temperatures.

Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras

Rice Terraces of the Philippine Cordilleras (photo from Wikipedia)

Why go?

These terraces are estimated to have been built about 2,000 years ago by the Cordillera tribes. That’s a pretty crazy engineering feat if you think about how this landscape was shaped using primitive tools.

Fun fact

These terraces were the first ever site included under the cultural landscape category in the World Heritage list in 1995.

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Ewen is deeply passionate about travel, and would love to have a life of roaming the world without a care. In reality, he’s got bills to pay and is a digital media professional whose interests are wide-ranging, stretching from fashion to football; puppies to politics. Ewen dabbles in photography, and can probably take half-decent pictures. He has an insatiable desire for bags and sneakers and dreams of one day going into outer space.